Dietary Supplements

Americans are spending as much as $1.7 billion on dietary supplements each year, according to 2005 information from the American Dietetic Association. And some consumers are questioning the safety, necessity and effectiveness of these products. Some questions are: · What is a supplement? A dietary supplement can include vitamins, minerals, botanicals, enzymes and amino acids. A product can be identified as a supplement by the "supplement facts" panel printed on the label.

andrear@herald-mail.com Some dietary supplements promise a quick fix for people who want to bulk up, slim down or enhance their athletic performance. But that promise could be empty - and the reality deadly. A dietary supplement - whether in the form of a tablet, capsule, liquid, powder or bar - is a product that's ingested, intended to supplement the diet and, among other requirements, contains a "dietary ingredient" such as vitamins, minerals, herbs, amino acids and dietary substances like enzymes, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration at www.fda.

Some things just don't make sense. For example, take health claims on food products versus health claims on dietary supplements. It takes years of studies and huge stacks of paperwork to get approval from Food and Drug Administration to make a health claim on a food product, such as high fiber on oatmeal packaging. But grind up the oatmeal and sell it in pill form, and you can make a claim based on a single study, with no preapproval needed from the FDA. --cont. from lifestyle -- Because of this, four scientific associations of food and nutrition professionals joined forces to urge the public to be aware of fraudulent claims when purchasing dietary supplements.

GOP forgets roots To the editor: A little over a year ago, like most Republicans in this state, I was overjoyed and looking forward to an era of smaller government in Maryland under the leadership of the first Republican governor in Maryland for over a generation. A year later there is no substantial downsizing or economizing by this government. No elimination of duplication or consolidation of departments, as is often done in the corporate world to streamline operations and eliminate waste.

As Americans flock to the Internet searching for health-care information and products, researchers from Boston University School of Medicine warn of big risks associated with buying certain traditional herbal cures online. Robert B. Saper and colleagues at the school bought samples of various Indian ayurvedic remedies and tested them for lead, mercury and arsenic. In a study published in Wednesday's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, the researchers reported that one in five of the Ayurvedic medicines purchased online contained toxic levels of the heavy metals.

Every morning, millions of people start their day by following their doctor's orders. They open a bottle of prescription medicine and pop a pill. At the same time, they might take a dose of cold medicine to tackle that stuffy nose. Seems innocent enough. But the combination of certain prescription drugs and over-the-counter remedies can sometimes have serious consequences. For instance, according to the Food and Drug Administration, taking pain reducers and prescription blood thinners can cause gastrointestinal bleeding.

Soon, the sun will be merely a rumor for long stretches during waking hours, and darkness will dominate our senses and moods. As if that weren't depressing enough, here's another grim thought: You most likely will become significantly deficient in vitamin D. Vitamin D, the so-called "sunshine vitamin," can be absorbed either through the skin via ultraviolet-B rays - by far the most efficient, plentiful source - or through pills or fortified foods....

shappell@herald-mail.com Local fitness industry employees and workout buffs are divided on the use of dietary supplements containing Ephedra in the wake of the Food and Drug Administration's recent announcement that such products will be banned in 2004. Several former users of the still-legal product interviewed at Gold's Gym in north Hagerstown said Ephedra-based products produce results such as reduced body fat and increased energy. Users' reactions to the substance varied widely.

Every morning, millions of people start their day by following their doctor's orders. They open a bottle of prescription medicine and pop a pill. At the same time, they might take a dose of cold medicine to tackle that stuffy nose. Seems innocent enough. But the combination of certain prescription drugs and over-the-counter remedies can sometimes have serious consequences. For instance, according to the Food and Drug Administration, taking pain reducers and prescription blood thinners can cause gastrointestinal bleeding.

As Americans flock to the Internet searching for health-care information and products, researchers from Boston University School of Medicine warn of big risks associated with buying certain traditional herbal cures online. Robert B. Saper and colleagues at the school bought samples of various Indian ayurvedic remedies and tested them for lead, mercury and arsenic. In a study published in Wednesday's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, the researchers reported that one in five of the Ayurvedic medicines purchased online contained toxic levels of the heavy metals.

Soon, the sun will be merely a rumor for long stretches during waking hours, and darkness will dominate our senses and moods. As if that weren't depressing enough, here's another grim thought: You most likely will become significantly deficient in vitamin D. Vitamin D, the so-called "sunshine vitamin," can be absorbed either through the skin via ultraviolet-B rays - by far the most efficient, plentiful source - or through pills or fortified foods....

Americans are spending as much as $1.7 billion on dietary supplements each year, according to 2005 information from the American Dietetic Association. And some consumers are questioning the safety, necessity and effectiveness of these products. Some questions are: · What is a supplement? A dietary supplement can include vitamins, minerals, botanicals, enzymes and amino acids. A product can be identified as a supplement by the "supplement facts" panel printed on the label.

andrear@herald-mail.com Some dietary supplements promise a quick fix for people who want to bulk up, slim down or enhance their athletic performance. But that promise could be empty - and the reality deadly. A dietary supplement - whether in the form of a tablet, capsule, liquid, powder or bar - is a product that's ingested, intended to supplement the diet and, among other requirements, contains a "dietary ingredient" such as vitamins, minerals, herbs, amino acids and dietary substances like enzymes, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration at www.fda.

Protect our vitamin supplements To the editor: The FDA's recent announcement to ban ephedra has initiated a virtual avalanche of negative commentary regarding the effects of the existing law governing dietary supplements. As one of approximately 190 million health conscious individuals who rely on these supplements, this escalating "bad press" is of great concern to me. Despite the inaccuracies and misrepresentations being perpetuated about DSHEA (the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act)

shappell@herald-mail.com Local fitness industry employees and workout buffs are divided on the use of dietary supplements containing Ephedra in the wake of the Food and Drug Administration's recent announcement that such products will be banned in 2004. Several former users of the still-legal product interviewed at Gold's Gym in north Hagerstown said Ephedra-based products produce results such as reduced body fat and increased energy. Users' reactions to the substance varied widely.

Some things just don't make sense. For example, take health claims on food products versus health claims on dietary supplements. It takes years of studies and huge stacks of paperwork to get approval from Food and Drug Administration to make a health claim on a food product, such as high fiber on oatmeal packaging. But grind up the oatmeal and sell it in pill form, and you can make a claim based on a single study, with no preapproval needed from the FDA. --cont. from lifestyle -- Because of this, four scientific associations of food and nutrition professionals joined forces to urge the public to be aware of fraudulent claims when purchasing dietary supplements.